On the afternoon of September 11, at the National Assembly House, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man met with Lao General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith on the occasion of the Lao General Secretary and President leading a high-ranking delegation of the Lao Party and State to pay a state visit to Vietnam.

At the meeting, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man expressed his belief that this important visit by General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith will continue to contribute to the unceasing cultivation and development of the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man congratulated the great and comprehensive achievements that the Lao Party, State and people have made in implementing the Resolution of the 11th Party Congress and the 9th Five-Year Socio-Economic Development Plan (2021-2025); and firmly believed that, under the wise leadership of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith, Laos will successfully organize the 12th National Congress of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party in early 2026 and successfully complete national development strategies.

Lao General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith sincerely thanked the leaders of the Party, State and people of Vietnam, including the National Assembly and Chairman of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man personally, for giving the delegation a warm, respectful, thoughtful and friendly welcome, deeply demonstrating the special solidarity relationship between Vietnam and Laos, "both comrades and brothers" that is unique in the world.

In the face of the great loss of life and property caused by storm No. 3, General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith sent his sincere condolences to the Vietnamese people, especially the northern mountainous provinces as well as the capital Hanoi and the people affected by this natural disaster. The Lao General Secretary and President expressed his belief that under the leadership and close attention of the Party, National Assembly and Government of Vietnam from the central to local levels, the Vietnamese people will overcome all difficulties and the lives of people in the affected areas will soon stabilize and return to normal.

The Lao Party General Secretary and President expressed his delight at witnessing Vietnam's strong development and the great, comprehensive achievements that the Vietnamese people have achieved under the wise leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the close supervision of the National Assembly, and the effective governance of the Government. Notably, socio-political stability, continuous economic growth, continuous improvement of people's lives, and enhanced international status are outstanding. Party General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith affirmed that Laos always considers Vietnam's success a source of encouragement, motivation, and a valuable lesson for Laos in the cause of national construction and development.

On this occasion, the Lao General Secretary and President thanked the Vietnamese National Assembly for always providing the Lao National Assembly with sincere and effective coordination, support and assistance, including preparations for the Lao National Assembly to successfully assume the role of AIPA Chair in 2024. General Secretary and President Thongloun Sisoulith said that Laos is looking forward to welcoming National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man to pay an official visit to the Lao People's Democratic Republic and attend the 45th AIPA General Assembly in the near future.

The Lao General Secretary and President hopes that the Lao National Assembly and the Vietnamese National Assembly will continue to exchange and share lessons learned in performing their assigned functions, tasks and powers, making the cooperation between the two legislative bodies of the two countries increasingly effective, contributing to enhancing the position of the National Assembly, worthy of being the highest State power body, the highest representative body of the people of each country.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man sincerely thanked the Lao Party, State, and people, and General Secretary and President Thoongloun Sisoulith personally, for sharing and visiting the Vietnamese people in the aftermath of the recent storm No. 3, demonstrating the traditional brotherly affection and special solidarity between Vietnam and Laos.

The National Assembly Chairman highly appreciated the special relationship between the two countries, which is making remarkable progress in many fields. In the context of the complicated developments in the regional and international situation, the National Assembly Chairman affirmed that Vietnam is always determined to strongly and comprehensively support the cause of building and defending Laos. Along with the good development of the bilateral relationship, cooperation between the two National Assemblies has been increasingly consolidated, maintained closely and effectively. The two sides have been implementing well the contents of the Cooperation Agreement between the two National Assemblies, resulting in the first Cambodia - Laos - Vietnam National Assembly Summit successfully held in Laos in December 2023.

In particular, the two National Assemblies are actively coordinating to research, compile and publish the book "50 years of relations between the National Assembly of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the National Assembly of the Lao People's Democratic Republic - Comprehensive Cooperation for Development" to summarize the development process, achievements and lessons learned to improve the effectiveness of cooperation between the two National Assemblies in the new period; at the same time, widely propagate and raise awareness of the people of the two countries about the close relationship between the two National Assemblies; contributing to helping the people of the two countries have a deeper understanding of the special relationship between Vietnam and Laos.

As the head of the Vietnamese legislative body, the National Assembly Chairman affirmed that he and the National Assembly will continue to do their utmost to foster the existing good relationship between Vietnam and Laos in general and between the two National Assemblies in particular, for the benefit of the people of the two countries, and to continuously consolidate and strengthen the traditional friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation with Laos.

The National Assembly Chairman said that the Vietnamese National Assembly will continue to increase information sharing, coordination and support for Laos at international, regional and sub-regional forums; continue to support and assist Laos in successfully assuming the role of ASEAN Chair and AIPA 45 Chair; be ready to share experiences and provide professional support in issues of interest to Laos and in which Vietnam has strengths, such as monitoring the implementation of budget estimates, building a legal corridor; monitoring key cooperation projects between the two countries, etc.